Someone To Watch Over me
by Red Shoe Kitty
Summary: When someone needs protecting, even if they do not know it, there is only one angel for the job.
1. Chapter 1

_It had to be cherubim. He hated those fuckers. Archangels were bad enough, the arrogant bastards, strutting around thinking they were God's Generals when in reality they were no more than jumped up guard dogs. They were easy to deal with, pander to their giant egos, toss in a sliver of obsequiousness and even a lower order angel like him could control the discourse. However, cherubim with their direct access to God's throne and their sense of entitlement and importance were a different kettle of fish. He decided that he would smite the first of those arseholes to remind him that they were depicted on the Ark of the Covenant (there had been mass celestial orgasms when the cherubim saw the first Indiana Jones movie and their egos had yet to recover) and the hell with the consequences. _

_"You require our assistance, little one?" The sarcastic voice came from a large ball of scintillating light that had just appeared in the corner of the room._

_He tried to maintain a grip on his temper by reminding himself exactly who he was doing this for. He stood to one side and indicated the unconscious figure on the bed. " I believe he has something you are looking for."_

_The light coalesced into the shape of a tall, androgynous, glowing figure which glided over to the bedside. A tendril of light encompassed the man who let out a small whimper of distress "This contains The Source"_

_"Yes"_

_"Return it to us now."_

_"There is our problem. Humans are not designed to hold The Source. This man is in terrible pain and The Source has infiltrated every part of him"_

_"We are cherubim. We have no care for the suffering of a thief."_

_He could not let that stand. "He is no thief. The Source spilled from its container. The container you exist to guard. He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Once we understood what had happened we reached out."_

_"Then we will take him." A bubble of light surrounded the man on the bed who screamed in agony._

_"Wait! He is precious to us. If I allow you to take him, I will want him back. Intact. Do you understand?"_

_"And if we simply take him? You will stop us...how?"_

_The angel blade appeared in his hand between heartbeats. "I will destroy you."_

_"You would also be destroyed."_

_He smiled. It was not a pleasant smile. "My destruction is unimportant. This man's continued existence is paramount."_

_There was a pause, then "we will take him. We will retrieve The Source. We will return him to you intact and functional. Separating The Source from this receptacle will take time. The hierarchy will be vulnerable whilst this is being done so the loss of The Source must be hidden from our enemies.. It is in your interest to maintain silence but we see there is another who may be...problematic. If you cannot control this variable our deal is null and void. We will reap The Source and discard the receptacle."_

_He nodded, "I anticipated this. Plans are in place."_

_"Very well. We will contact you when this meat envelope is ready for return."_

_The light flared once more, blinding him. When he could see again, he was alone in the room. Wiping his streaming eyes he muttered, "assbutt."_

* * *

_"And they just agreed?" Bobby Singer was unimpressed_

_"They did."_

_"And they are insisting on secrecy?"_

_Castiel nodded._

_"Did they say how he will be when we get him back?"_

_"Intact and functional."_

_Bobby frowned, "well, that's uncomfortably vague."_

_"That is the least of our worries."_

_"Yeah, the remaining idjit. He's not gonna like one little bit of this."_

_"We have a plan to manage that."_

_"We sure do," agreed Bobby, "Are you sure you can pull it off?"_

_Castiel looked offended, "It will protect them both, he won't even know there is a difference."_

"_Yeah, until we need him in a hurry and he's stuck in Oz without his ruby slippers."_

_"I do not understand that reference. I have included a very specific reset trigger, which centres around a deliberate act that cannot happen by chance. It will bring him back when we need him." With a whooshing sound of wings, he was gone._

_Bobby reached for the whisky bottle. "I hope you are right, boy. I really do."_


	2. Chapter 2

Will Deacon would be the first to admit that his life was fairly mundane and he was grateful for that. His childhood had been tumultuous, especially after his mother had died and his father, a restless and itinerant drunk, had been left as his only carer. From the age of four he had been dragged from state to state by his father and by the time he was approaching ten he had been left alone to care for himself for days at a time. As soon as he was able, he had run from his father and sought out his remaining family. Now, thanks to a bequest from his grandfather, he owned his own home which was at the end of a small secluded track on the edge of Blackwater Foot, a small mid-western town. His nearest neighbours were at least a mile away and his house boasted a large back yard which was surrounded by protected woodland giving him the peace and security he craved.

His daily routine never varied. Monday to Friday his alarm would wake him at 6 a.m and he would be out of the house for his daily run by 6.30 and back by 7.30 giving him enough to shower and eat breakfast before heading to his job at Kripke's Auto Renovations. The guys who worked there were like family, or at least how Will thought how family might be, in that they looked out for each other and teased each other mercilessly. The specialist garage was run by a curmudgeonly, older man who took no shit from any of them. No one knew for sure how old he was and no-one knew his first name, he only ever responded to Kripke or Boss. He did, however, have a heart of gold under his gruff exterior and was the closest thing Will had ever known to a real father. Will loved his job and he was damn good at it too. On Wednesdays and Fridays he would go out after work with the rest of the guys for beer, burgers and some gentle flirtation with Mandy, their regular waitress at Stereotype, their local bar. Every six weeks or so, driven by an impulse he did not really want to explore too much, he would drive fifty miles to the nearest large town and cruise the gay bars looking for action. Will was a very good looking guy so he always found it. OK, sometimes he thought it would be nice to have someone to come home to at the end of the working day, someone he could cuddle up on the sofa and watch crappy movies wit, but on the whole he was pretty much satisfied with his life.

At the moment, however, introspection was the last thing on his mind as he was making the acquaintance of a fascinating lady - a 1969 Chevrolet Corvette ZL-1. This was always his favourite part of a new project, introducing himself to the car that he would be working on for the next few days or weeks. The car was a beautiful wreck. "Oh you are gorgeous,baby but what have they done to you?. Where the hell have you come from?" he murmured as he popped the hood and bent to examine the all-aluminium ZL-1 engine block, "It's OK darlin', I'm gonna make you like new, trust me."

"Will? Will? WILL! " Will jumped and banged his head on the edge of the car's hood. Rubbing the sore spot he turned to face Boss. "If you can tear yourself away from the new love of your life I'd be grateful if you could spare me a second."

"But, Boss," Will was absent mindedly stroking the car's wing as he straightened up, "will you look at the lines on this? The all-aluminium ZL-1 engine block was only installed in three of these corvettes. Do you know how rare they are? The neglect on this is sinful! Whose is this?"

Kripke scowled, "never mind about that, now. I need you on a different project."

"But boss!"

His boss rolled his eyes, tell me something, boy. "Does it say Deacon's Auto Renovations out front? Does it?"

Will tried to hide his smile, "No, Sir."

"No, Sir. It says Kripke's Auto Renovations which means when I call for you you come running, no matter how in love you are with your latest job - you hear me?. Now, if your highness can spare me the time I want to see you in the office."

Will frowned, "Am I in trouble?"

"No, No, quite the opposite. I need you to do me a favour."

Bemused Will followed Kripke, wiping his hand on the piece of rag he kept in the pocket of his overalls for that purpose. As he entered the office a figure rose from one of the chairs. The morning sun was behind him and seemed to outline his slim figure in a nimbus of light. Vaguely Will noted that the guy was shorter than him by an inch or two and that the brightest blue eyes Will had ever seen that were set off by his tousled brown hair. All in all this stranger was quite the most beautiful man Will had ever encountered. Gradually Will became aware that someone was talking to him and he dragged his attention back to the conversation.

"This here is a friend of mine," Kripke was saying, "and I wondered if you could help him out"

The beautiful man looked seriously at Will for a while and then, in a voice that somehow managed to be a combination of rich dark chocolate, smooth whisky and gravel, said, "Hello."

Will stared and blushed, "Hello," he said breathlessly

The stranger tilted his head in confusion, "Hello."

Dammit, Will's overall were getting unaccountably tight in important areas. He tried a smile. "Hello!"

Kripke was looking at the two of them, confusion all over his face, the tension in the room was palpable. He cleared his throat. "Anyways, he's kinda stuck in town for a while and he needs a place to stay on the down low. You have spare rooms don'cha?." Will nodded gormlessly and Boss rolled his eyes, "I thought maybe you could give him a place to sleep for a few days."

Will tried to pull himself together, _share his home with this vision? hell, yeah, baby! _"Umm sure," he said, "always ready to help out a friend of Kripke's."

He stuck out his hand, "Will Deacon."

"Castiel"

"Is that a first name or a last name?"

"Yes"

Will rolled his eyes. This was gonna be epic


	3. Chapter 3

Fifteen minutes later, Will was rethinking his definition of epic. Kripke had insisted that he take the rest of the day off to help his new house guest settle in but the atmosphere in the car was strained and awkward and Will was beginning to regret being pulled away from the Chevy. His passenger seemed content to stare out of the window and had more or less resisted all of Will's attempts to start a conversation.

Will tried again, "Is this your first visit to Blackwater Foot?"

Castiel seemed to bring his mind back from a million years away, "yes"

"Is the Chevy Corvette yours?"

"I do not drive."

Will frowned at that one, Blackwater Foot was not exactly on the beaten track, "How did you get here then?"

"I had a travelling companion, he dropped me off."

"OK. This guy couldn't hang around then?"

"No."

Will gestured to the small bag resting on his back seat, "that why you are travelling so light?"

"Yes."

"How long are you thinking of staying?"

"Until the job I have come to do is complete."

There was another five minutes of silence while Will thought about this, then, "what do you do for a living?"

Castiel sighed. Such curiosity, some things never changed, " I work in...security."

"What like, home security? Because I could really do with some information about upgrading my home alarm system."

"I specialise more in personal protection."

"Wow like a bodyguard? Have you looked after anyone famous?"

"I can't talk about it."

"So, this job you have come here to do, is someone in trouble?"

"I can't talk about it."

"It's not Kripke or any of the guys at the garage is it?"

Castiel sighed. "What part of 'I can't talk about it,' is causing you difficulty?"

"Oh. Sorry" Will felt completely slapped down. Had he misinterpreted what he thought had been a spasm of attraction between the two of them, back in Kripke's office? If Castiel was going to be this difficult to interact with, his stay with Will was going to be very uncomfortable for both of them. As he turned onto the track that led to his house, he gave it one more go. "Well," he said with false cheer, "this is me."

Castiel surveyed the house and its verdant surroundings and a very tiny smile hitched at his mouth, "it looks like heaven," he whispered.

"Yeah, it is" agreed Will, "my own little part of it, anyway."

The two men climbed out of the car. Will noted that Castiel was quick to pull his bag from the car. _If he is so self-sufficient that he won't even accept help with his luggage, why did Kripke think putting him up with me was necessary, pretty sure that this is a man who can fend for himself without my help_ thought Will.

Will had made his way to the front steps before he realised that Castiel was still standing by his car looking around. He turned back to face him. "This is all yours?" Castiel said. "Do you live out here all on your own?.

"Yep, just me...and Sammy of course." replied Will and then took an involuntary step backwards at the look of grief and pain that flashed across Castiel's face.

"Sammy?"

"Yeah he should be around here somewhere." Will raised his voice, "Sam? Hey Sammy! C'mon dude we have a visitor."

It takes a lot to discommode an angel but Castiel was both surprised and relieved when the largest, fluffiest, ginger tomcat he had ever seen sauntered out from the tree line and lazily plopped himself down at Will's feet for a belly rub. "It's a cat," he said, not quite sure if it was a comment or a question.

Will looked up from stroking his pet, "yeah, Sammy's my best bud. Aint'cha baby?" He glanced up at Castiel, "Oh man! You aren't allergic or anything are you?"

"For he is the servant of the Living God, duly and daily serving him," murmured Cas, laying his hand on the cat in gentle benison.

Will watched in astonishment as Sammy leapt into Castiel's arms and settled down purring like the engine of a 1967 Impala, "wow, you must be some kind of cat whisperer," he said, "Sammy doesn't really trust anyone."

"I like cats," Castiel informed him, gravely.

"OK then, well follow me and I will give you the tour.

As it turned out, the tour did not take long. Will's house was not that big but he was obviously proud of it. Castiel worked hard to make the appropriate appreciative noises but his people skills were rusty and he had forgotten how exhausting the effort of maintaining conversation with humans could be. Apart from anything else he was finding it really difficult to keep his eyes off of his reluctant host.

Eventually they ended up in the kitchen, Will glanced at the clock and said, "how about an early lunch?"

That threw Castiel slightly, "I...um...I don't really eat. Much. Er...Lunch...that is. I don't really eat lunch"

"Really?" Will ran his eyes up and down Castiel's form, "you don't look malnourished to me."

Castiel blushed, "if you don't mind, I think I'll just take a walk around the perimeter."

"The perimeter?" Will laughed, "you make it sound as if we are expecting some kind of attack. I know you work security but trust me, there is no danger here."

"If I am accepting your hospitality, I have an obligation to your safety," said Castiel.

Will smiled and gently punched him on the shoulder, "you are the strangest man I ever met but fine, if walking the perimeter makes you happy you go for it, dude."

For a long second Castiel stood taking in the smile and the small crinkles of happiness around Will's green eyes before ducking his head in acquiescence and heading out through the back door.

Will moved to the window to watch his strange guest striding towards the tree line, his flapping trench coat making him an incongruous figure in the rural setting. Just looking at Castiel gave Will a warm feeling of comfort and familiarity, as if he both knew this man extremely well and was deeply attached to him. He ran his hands through his brown hair, " I am so screwed," he told himself.


	4. Chapter 4

Castiel strode across the grass towards the trees. He could feel Will/Dean watching him, his gaze burning through the weight of his coat and warming Castiel's skin. He hunched his shoulders and lengthened his stride, this whole thing was already turning out to be more difficult than he had anticipated.

Once he had reached the sanctuary of the woods, his pace slowed. Slumping down on a convenient log he put his head in his hands. A persistent tugging at his trousers caught his attention and he realised that Will's cat, Sammy, had decided to accompany him. The cat sat expectantly at his feet looking up into his face."You know that things are different, don't you?" asked Castiel. Sammy butted his head against the angel's leg and gave a small, confirmatory 'mrrp'.

"Your friend is safe," said Castiel reassuringly, "both he, his close friends, the whole town and the man under my protection are under a celestial bemusement. I see the man I know as Dean Winchester but all others see Will Deacon. Dean also sees himself as Will. You are the only creature around here, apart from me, who recognises there has been a change." The cat gave Castiel a sceptical look and the angel bent down to stroke his ears gently. "Look, it's complicated, OK? I call him Dean/Will to remind myself that even though he looks like my close friend Dean he believes he is called Will." He paused, "actually sometimes I call him Will/Dean too because the Will part leaks through." He frowned, "It shouldn't, the two men are still separate individuals but sometimes, his reactions and emotions seem to be more like your Will than my Dean. I don't know why that is happening, or even how it is happening but no-one has placed a celestial bemusement over such a large area before so maybe that has something to do with it." Sammy appeared unimpressed by Castiels's concerns and nipped at his fingers as if to remind him to stick to the point.

Castiel straightened up and Sammy leapt onto his lap settling down with the air of a cat who required further information. "Very well," said Cas pensively, "I need a confidante, and you need an explanation. Let me tell you why I am here. It started a week ago, it wasn't even supposed to be our kind of job..."

* * *

**One week ago**

" Dean, it's a missing kid."

"That's right, Sammy. A missing kid, there is no evidence that this is a job for us. Emily Jameson has wandered off, she has probably done it before, it's what six year olds do, hell we did it all the time when we were that age. She'll probably turn up in time for supper and not even understand why her parents were so worried. There are no ghosts, or wendigos or demons here, just a lost child. Whereas we do know for certain there is a vamp nest in Vermont that needs taking out."

Bobby cleared his throat, "I got a call from a second gen hunter, Jamie Gordon, he's heading out to Vermont," he said. "He's taken down solo vamps before but never tackled a nest on his own. He contacted me to ask for help. Dean if you wanna head out and meet up with him, Sam and I can join the hunt for little Emily."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Oh man! A babysitting job? Really?"

"Oh get over yourself, princess," snapped Bobby, "you wanna ice vamps, you get to ice vamps."

Dean laughed, "OK,OK I'm going." He ruffled Sam's hair and winked a Booby "see ya later, crocodiles."

Bobby snorted "idjit."

Sam pushed open the door to the dilapidated barn. It was the kind of place that he would have found irresistible when he was six but he didn't know if six year old girls felt the same way about deserted old ruins as little boys did. Blinking to allow his eyes to adjust to the gloom after the bright sunshine he moved gingerly into the building.

There seemed to be some kind of blue luminosity flickering toward the back of the barn and cautiously Sam edged towards it. His foot brushed against something lying on the floor. His heart sank, it looked like he had found little Emily Jameson, what was left of her anyway. He bent to get a closer look and swallowed hard, the little girl was nothing more than a pile of ash, a pile of ash which, incongruously ended in two small, intact, feet in unicorn patterned sneakers. Pulling his gun from the waistband of his jeans he headed deeper into the barn towards the light.

Rounding a corner, his feet crunched upon the shards of what had obviously been a large stone sarcophagus. Sam had barely time to wonder why such a thing would be hidden in a deserted farm building before his head was suddenly filled with _**noise**__. _He had never experienced anything like it, it filled his skull, it squeezed his brain, it was all and everything and he could not escape it. Blood began to pour from his eyes, ears and nose and he felt himself falling. He thought he was screaming but the noise, the noise was the whole world

* * *

"Castiel!"

It was the urgency of the summons, not the summoner, that had him appearing at such speed. He looked around, confused, "Dean?"

"No, Sam." Bobby stood aside and gestured to where Sam was curled on the floor, screaming, bleeding and outlined in a nimbus of blue fire.

Castiel recognised immediately what had happened. He wasted no time, he hoisted Sam over his shoulder and snapped "Panic room" before disappearing.

Bobby Singer had broken a few speed laws in his time but never so completely as he broke them on the journey back to the salvage yard once Castiel had taken Sam. Bobby had seen Sam Winchester hurting, drunk, grief stricken and possessed but never had he heard him scream the way he had been screaming when he found him in that old barn. Skidding his car to a stop he rushed into the house to be greeted by utter silence. The whole place was quiet. A spasm of fear took him and he rushed down to the panic room. Castiel was there, sitting next to Sam Winchester who was convulsing on the bed.

"Is he OK?" asked Bobby anxiously, I mean, he's stopped screaming, that's gotta be good. Right?"

Castiel shook his head sadly, "He has damaged his vocal cords, he is still screaming, we can just longer hear him. "

"Cas, what the hell has happened here?"

Cas looked at him, "How did God create the universe?" he said

Bobby looked confused, " Um he said 'let there be light'"

"Hmm, he _said_." Castiel nodded, "and what was there in the beginning?"

Bobby was beginning to get irritated, "what is the point of this? How is this helping Sam?"

Castiel shrugged, "indulge me"

Bobby sighed, "well, according to John, chapter one, verse one, in the beginning was the Word and the Word was God."

"Indeed. The Word of God, spoken with the Voice of God, absolutely the most powerful thing across all levels of existence. And the Voice of God has been kept for millennia in a secure vessel guarded by the cherubim. They refer to it as The Source"

"So? How does this relate to Sam getting injured?"

Castiel interrupted, "he did not 'get injured'. He stumbled across the vessel that the cherubim have been using. Somehow it has been damaged and The Source has been freed. Bobby, Sam has absorbed the Voice of God. It is consuming him at a cellular level. I got him away as fast as I could but I am afraid that it was not fast enough"

"OK Cas, no-one is blaming you. Fix him."

"I can't."

"Whaddya mean you can't?"

"This infestation requires specialist knowledge."

"Well then, who the hell has this specialist knowledge?" demanded Bobby.

"The ones tasked as the guardians. I need to summon the Cherubim."

"Well, get onto it then!"

"The Cherubim are capricious and petulant. The freeing of The Source means they have blundered and so they will be even more defensive and belligerent than usual. Their help is by no means a given.

"Talkin' about ain't gonna make it happen quicker."

Castiel sighed, _of course, it had to be cherubim. He hated those fuckers. _Opening his essence to the void he called upon his celestial brethren

From Bobby' s perspective the whole thing was a bit of an anticlimax. Castiel closed his eyes and went very still. After a few seconds he drew in a deep breath and Sam winked out of existence. At Bobby's alarmed shout Castiel seemed to come to his senses once more.

"The Cherubim have agreed to help and to return Sam to us when they have once more contained The Source.

"And they just agreed? Just like that?" Bobby was unimpressed

Castiel decided to keep it simple. No need for Bobby to know that he had basically threatened to destroy the upper echelons of heaven. No need for him to examine his motivation for doing so, although he was certain Dean Winchester's happiness was a major factor. Definitely no need for him to know what cost Castiel might have to pay to get Sam back, sane and in one piece. "They did."

"And they are insisting on secrecy?"

Castiel nodded. "With good reason. Control of The Source would be very appealing to the enemies of heaven."

"Did they say what state Sam will be when we get him back?"

"Intact and functional."

Bobby frowned, "well, that's uncomfortably vague."

"There is more." Bobby raised an eyebrow. Castiel's hands were shaking so whatever was coming it wasn't gonna be good. The angel continued, "They think Dean will be a problem."


	5. Chapter 5

Bobby snorted, "when is that boy ever NOT a problem?"

"Returning Sam to us is contingent on absolutely no interference from Dean. On any level."

Bobby scratched his beard, "how the hell do we guarantee that?"

Castiel would not meet Bobby's eyes, "obviously, we must not tell him. He cannot know."

Bobby frowned, "how long do the cherubim think is this gonna take?"

Castiel shrugged, "They have taken Sam into the void, there is no time there. He could be back with us in an hour or it could be a year...or a decade or longer"

"Well how the hell are we supposed to keep Dean in the dark for that long?" demanded Bobby, " the boy is an idjit but he ain't stupid. I can't keep him ricocheting around the country on busywork and it sure as hell won't be pretty when he finds out we have lied to him. Castiel, I don't think he would ever forgive us." He looked Castiel full in the face, "This might cost you more than you realise, son."

Castiel's eyes were sad but his tone was calm, "I know but I may have a plan. I can place him under a celestial bemusement. I can insert him into someone else's life. As long as I am close, he won't know the difference and neither will the people he interacts with on a regular basis. To all intents and purposes, he won't be Dean Winchester any more. He will be whoever is the original owner of the life."

"Like a demon possession?"

"No," snapped Castiel, "nothing like a demon possession. More like a...realigning of reality."

"And you can do that?"

"I am an Angel of the Lord, of course I can do it. It's not an ideal solution in the long term but as a first response it has a certain...elegance."

Bobby frowned, "What happens to the, what did you say...the original owner of life?"

"He will be out of the picture."

Bobby paled, sometimes he forgot that Castiel's world view was not the same as your average human's and that angel did not always equal compassionate. "Out of the picture how, Castiel?"

"He will find that he has won an all expenses paid holiday to Europe. He will not be harmed."

"You sound like you have someone in mind, already."

Castiel did that weird staring off in the distance thing that, Bobby realised, usually meant he was scanning the entire world. In a couple of seconds his attention returned to Bobby. "There is a man, about Dean's size and age, Will Deacon. He lives alone in a small town of just over 850 people. He works in an auto renovation shop. He would be perfect. I think he might enjoy Rome."

"Why Rome?"

Castiel smiled, "I have...contacts... in that city."

Bobby once again reminded himself just who, and what, he was talking to."Of course you do. Ok, so Will Deacon gets to take in the sights of Rome and you find a way to shack up with Dean, who will be living someone's else's life whilst unaware that his baby brother is being consumed by the word of God?"

"Essentially, yes. It will work and protect both Dean and Sam"

"Yeah, until we need Dean back here in a hurry and he's stuck in Oz without his ruby slippers."

"I do not understand that reference. I can include a very specific reset trigger, which will centre around a deliberate act that will not happen by chance. Once Sam is returned I can get Dean back into his life and both of us back here immediately.

* * *

**Now**

"And that is why I am here," concluded Castiel, " You and I see Dean but to everyone else, even to himself, he appears as Will. I need to protect my Dean and be ready to reunite him with his brother when the time is right, whilst your Will enjoys Europe." He paused. "It is imperative that this conversation remains between us. You can't tell anyone else, it would put both those I care about and your human companion in jeopardy." Sammy gave him a look that you didn't need to be an angel to interpret, Castiel looked suitably chastened, "I know, you are a cat, who would you tell? My apologies." Sammy had heard enough, he jumped from Castiel's lap and disappeared off into the undergrowth. Castiel stood and made his way back to the house.

Will/Dean was in his favourite spot in the entire place. He had climbed out of one of the dormer windows in the attic and was sitting on the gently sloping roof of the house. From this vantage point he could see across the whole of his property to the hills beyond. It was a good place to go to when a man had some serious thinking to do. The current object of Will/Dean's contemplation was, of course, the strange guy who had been foisted upon him as a house guest. He found this Castiel both enigmatic and baffling, he blew hot and cold and Will/Dean never knew where he stood. On the one hand it seemed as if the man was deliberately trying to keep him at arm's length with his one word responses and refusal to share a meal but on the other...well, once or twice he had caught Castiel looking at him as if he wanted to strip him naked and taste every inch of him. To be honest, Will/Dean was totally up for that.

Movement in the tree line caught his attention and a happy smile spread across his face as he saw his guest emerge and head towards the house. He climbed to his feet. "Castiel, hey Castiel. Get yourself up here." He rummaged in the cool box which was being held on the windowsill by the sash of the dormer "I have beer" He held up a bottle and waved it enticingly. Unfortunately his foot slipped on a small patch of moss and before he knew it he had fallen and was sliding towards the edge of the roof and a thirty foot drop.

Shit" thought Will/Dean to himself, "this is not good." Suddenly his arm was grasped in a strong grip and he was jerked to his feet and into a close embrace. Catching his breath he stared into the concerned face of Castiel. "Holy crap man, how fast are you? Did you fly here?" He twisted to peer over the edge of the roof. "Wow. That would have been messy! Thanks, dude. You are like some kind of guardian angel or something." He suddenly became aware that he was still holding tightly onto Castiel's shoulders and that he was pressed closely up against the other man's body. He felt a rush of heat through his entire body and absently noted that Castiel's blue eyes had also darkened with desire. Hastily Will/Dean disentangled himself from their embrace and coughed with self-consciously "Well, anyway," he rubbed the back of his neck with embarrassment, "thanks."

"You are welcome." Castiel wrapped his coat around himself and gingerly lowered himself onto the roof.

Will/Dean passed him a beer and sat next to him, "you saved my life, man," he nudged Castiel's shoulder, "that means you are responsible for me now, right?"

Castiel gave him the first genuine smile Will/Dean had seen from him, "plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose" Dean-as-Will looked blank and Castiel's smile widened, "It means I know," he said.


	6. Chapter 6

The days passed slowly, one by one, and the two men found themselves in a mutually acceptable routine. Each day they would travel into Blackwater Foot together. Castiel had claimed a regular table for himself in the small coffee shop opposite Kripke's Auto Repairs and spent all of his day there, with a laptop impersonating someone writing a novel. From this vantage point he could see directly into the bay where Dean/Will was happily working on the Chrysler and, at first, Cas fully expected the days to flow quite smoothly and peacefully until he heard from Bobby that the cherubim had returned Sam.

However, he soon realised that this was not to be the case as each day turned out to be more trying than the last. For one thing he had not realised just how accident prone Dean Winchester was. Three times the angel had stopped him walking into traffic, once because he was enthusiastically explaining how his renovation of the Chrysler was coming along, once because he was hurrying across the road to join Cas for lunch and once because he was trying to find a cute cat video someone had posted on social media to show him. He had also nearly been flattened by a bus because he had turned to wave at Castiel as he went into the garage and had slipped off the pavement. He ate too quickly and talked with his mouth full which meant he was almost always one bite of a bacon cheeseburger away from needing the Heimlich Manoeuvre. Home was no safer since Sammy the cat who seemed to have an agenda of his own going on, was constantly tripping either or both of them which resulted in quite a few involuntary embraces and in Dean/Will's case two undignified falls down the stairs. Castiel spent all day in an agony of fear and heightened vigilance waiting for the next Dean/Will mishap. He was also having to lie on a daily basis and dissimulation was not second nature to angels. To avoid awkward questions Cas had become used to, at least giving the impression of, sleeping and eating, Sammy was helping with that too, hoovering up any stray scraps that accidentally dropped from Castiel's hand to the floor, the real Will would have to put his pet on a diet when he returned to his own life.

However, there were also moments that the angel cherished, such as eating breakfast together in the tiny kitchen, making plans to hike the woods around Blackwater Foot, for example, and Castiel's new personal favourite, sitting close together on the sofa drinking beer, eating popcorn and watching movies each evening. Dean/Will showed a surprising fondness for what he described as chick flicks, along with tear jerkers and period dramas. He had become positively weepy when watching 'Call Me By Your Name' and if Cas had not seen it for himself, he would not have believed it.

Despite, or maybe because of, their growing closeness it was the evenings and the nights that were most difficult and confusing for both men. Sometimes Will felt as if he was two different men. On the one hand he was excited to learn as much as he could about his new friend, Castiel, but occasionally he felt as though he had known the other man for many years. Then there had been the disconcerting incident when he had caught sight of himself exiting the shower and was shocked to see a complex design tattooed on his chest. Will had no recollection of ever getting a tattoo and when he looked again, it was gone. He loved the intimate, relaxed vibe of the evenings that he shared with Cas but could not shake the feeling that this was a phase of their relationship that he had secretly wanted for some time. It was all most confusing.

Castiel was likewise struggling with his own hitherto unacknowledged desires, all the time he had been associating with the Winchesters, they had been living out of the boot of the Impala with a limited wardrobe so Castiel had never seen Dean in anything but jeans, tee-shirt and flannel shirt. These days, however, now he was living Will Deacon' s life, he had taken to wandering around the house in a pair of ancient sleep pants which were washed soft and did nothing to hide the fact that Dean/Will was obviously not a fan of underwear when relaxing at home. It was on the tip of Castiel's tongue to ask if he was dressing this way deliberately in order to drive him insane, Cas had never fully understood the concept of 'mixed messages' before but Dean/Will was giving him a master class. Another example, which was causing Castiel an emotional migraine was the fact that, in the past, when hunting with the Winchesters, Castiel had been accustomed to watch over Dean whilst he slept and he had not anticipated this changing but on the first night of his stay, his host had shown him to his room, wished him a good night and then gently but firmly closed the door, leaving Castiel alone and isolated. It had been the same every night since too, this seemed particularly odd since during the day Dean/Will seemed remarkably tactile, he was constantly hugging Cas, nudging his shoulder, or touching his arm when he was talking to him. A couple of days ago he had absent mindedly grabbed hold of Castiel's hand as they were crossing the street, apparently oblivious of the angel's look of surprise. And then this evening...this evening...

_They had been watching some film that Dean had chosen. "Come on Cas I can't believe you have never seen 'It's a Wonderful Life'. It's an all time classic." The film was irritating Castiel with its inaccurate portrayal of angels - 'everytime a bell rings an angel gets his wings' indeed. What nonsense. His attention to the movie was not helped by the fact thatWill/Dean, having spent all day bent over the engine of a car, was complaining that his back was hurting him and was fidgeting around on the sofa trying to get comfortable. In the end he gave a huge sigh and said, "c'mon Dude, let me rest against you. Heat will do my poor tired muscles good and you are like a furnace". _

_Against his better judgement, Castile arranged himself in the right angle of the L-shaped sofa with his legs spread out along the sectional, Dean, wriggled into the space between his legs and leaned back against Cas' chest with a soft sigh. "You are sooo warm," he said softly, "It's like having my own hot stone therapist." They sat quietly for some time and then Dean/Will took Cas' hand and placed it over his cock and covered it with his own hand, entangling their fingers. Castiel shifted uncomfortably, his body was betraying him and he could feel his dick starting to press against the fly of his pants. There was no way Dean/Will could be unaware of his arousal. "Nice" murmured Dean appreciatively as he slowly began to move their joined hands over his erection, leaning his head back on Castiel's shoulder. The soft coconut scent of his shampoo made Cas feel dizzy with desire and he began to rut against Dean's arse. _

_From Will/Dean's perspective this was what he had been dreaming of, he had been trying so hard to resist the other man that he had reached the point of pretty much shutting Castiel in his room every night to avoid temptation. However, right in this moment, with Castiel's scent surrounding him and Castiel's heat soaking into him he decided that all this self-denial was pointless and impulsively placed Cas' hand where he had wanted it to be since they first met. He could feel Castiel's heart beating fast against his back as his long fingers gently caressed his cock. Slowly, scared that if he moved too fast he would scare the other man off, Will/Dean released Castiel's fingers and pulled his cock free of his pants. The soft sigh that brushed his ear told him how on board his temporary house mate was with this and it only took a few strokes before he spilled everywhere. As he did so, he felt Cas buck against him and copious, searing come soaked the seat of his pants._

"And then I ruined everything," whispered Castiel into the darkness of his bedroom. As they had lay sated and panting, Cas, drunk with endorphins and lust had allowed himself the luxury of nuzzling the soft skin behind his friend's ear before whispering, "Dean."

"My name is Will," snapped Will/Dean. "Who the hell is Dean?" He rolled away from Castiel and shot to his feet, pulling off his sodden pants and gifting Cas with a glimpse of his long, thick cock, "you know what? Never mind. I thought... I thought you wanted me like I wanted you but now I see that you were just using me as a substitute for this Dean" and with that he had gathered up his clothes and fled, the slamming of his bedroom door acting as a full stop to the evening.

Sadly, Castiel had cleaned up their mess and headed up to his own room. He paused outside Dean/Will's door but couldn't hear anything. He felt lost and anchorless and could have bitten his own tongue out for his thoughtlessness and for his weakness. Before this he would have said that he knew Dean Winchester better than anyone one the planet, maybe even better than Sam. But the current situation was perplexing because this new Dean was a mystery to him. Castiel was making himself dizzy by trying to harmonise what he knew of Dean Winchester, hunter with the man that Dean was when he was Will/Dean, a small town, auto renovation specialist. The man he knew, the hunter, the older brother, the hero, the man he lo...respected, above all others, he was still there but somehow he was simultaneously freer, kinder and more trusting. This new Dean had friends, good people as Castiel knew having been coaxed into joining them for beer and burgers the previous evening, his Dean did not really have friends. It had made his Grace sing to see how carefree Dean/Will could be, how happy he was taking part in good natured teasing, gentle flirtations and silly jokes. Suddenly, remembering the movie they had been watching earlier, it occurred to him that what he was witnessing was the man Dean Winchester would have been if he was not carrying the burden of being a hunter. If he was open to making friends without the fear that they would die in horrible ways and leave him alone as they always did. Without the crushing sense of responsibility, without the cynicism, without the fear of abandonment, without the constant suspicion of people's motives and, most importantly, without the overwhelming sense of guilt that his Dean carried with him, given the chance of a safe and mediocre life, Dean Winchester could have been this happy, loving, caring and contented man.

The thought almost broke his heart. Castiel gently placed his fingers on Dean/Will's bedroom door. " I wish I could take your burdens, '" he whispered. "I wish I could help you be this loving, happy man. I wish...I wish...I wish... "


	7. Chapter 7

Castiel moved away from Will/Dean's door and sadly made his way to his own room. Entering, he shed his rumpled and sticky clothing and slumped despondently onto the bed. Drawing up his legs, Castiel rested his head on his knees. His eyes were stinging and the angel absently put his fingers up to his lids. His angel sight showed that his fingertips were wet. "Huh, leaking," he said softly, wiping his fingers on the quilt. Sighing, he unfurled his wings wrapping them around his body for comfort.

There was a quiet knock on Castiel's bedroom door but before he could even respond the door was pushed open and Dean/Will stood in the doorway, back-lit by the glow of the hallway lamp. He was naked and beautiful. Cas froze "Will?"

Like most hunters, the Winchester boys generally slept in their clothes so as to always be ready to move when needed, so Castiel had never seen Dean naked, not properly. Sneaking sideways glances when Dean was exiting the shower didn't count. Now, however, Dean was standing in the doorway of his room, proudly naked and impressively aroused and Cas couldn't tear his eyes away. Dean/Will strode into the room before Castiel could do anything to conceal his wings. At first his eyes were downcast. "I'm sorry about freaking out earlier," he said, "I really want us to be together and I, er... I could be Dean, if that's who you want me to be." He looked up, saw the wings and caught his breath, "who...what... are you, Castiel?"

Reluctantly, realising that it was too late to hide his true nature, and reminding himself that the 'real' Dean was familiar with his celestial origins anyway, Castiel climbed off the bed and spread his wings to show their full glory, "I am a Seraph" Dean/Will looked blank, Cas sighed, "I am an angel of The Lord."

"Fucking hell," Dean/Will moved closer, "you are gorgeous." He reached out a tentative hand towards Castiel's wings, "Can I touch them?"

Wordlessly Castiel nodded. This was one of his deepest fantasies coming true. A naked and aroused Dean Winchester shamelessly touching him, wanting him. A small part of Castiel's conscience whispered that Dean was under celestial bemusement and that the honourable thing for Castiel to do would be to gently turn him down and evict him from his room but then Dean/Will slowly caressed the edge of Cas' wing and the shock of arousal pretty much wiped all thoughts of restraint from the angel's mind. With a small moan he pulled Dean into his arms making the other man laugh delightedly.

"They are so soft," said Dean/Will wonderingly, "Are they sensitive?" and he ran curious fingers around the joint of wing and shoulder blade making Castiel's cock jump and leak, smearing pre-come between their joined bodies. "I guess they are." He pressed closer, "mmm you smell delicious," he ran his tongue down Castiel's neck and across his pecs, pausing to graze the angel's nipple with his teeth. "I'm sorry about before," whispered Dean/Will, "I don't care what you are, I don't care about any other men. I just know I want you."

Suddenly, Castiel was weary of it all. He was weary of conflict, of celestial politics, of the hunt and of being the hunted. Most of all, he told himself, he was weary of denying himself the one thing he had ever craved in the whole of his existence but had been unable to put a name to until he had been sent on a simple retrieval mission to Hell and had seen Dean Winchester, bloody, obdurate and unrepentant, for the first time. He wrapped his wings around them both and fell back onto the bed.

Dean/Will's hands were everywhere and Cas thought he had never experienced such pleasure until his erstwhile lover slithered down his body and took his cock deep into his throat. Castiel was not sure if the skills that Dean was demonstrating meant that he had explored this side of his sexuality before or if this was another example of elements of Will Deacon leaking through the celestial bemusement but one thing was certain Dean Winchester had some serious cock sucking skills. For the first time in his existence Castiel released his control and just allowed himself to feel. He tangled his hands in Dean/Will's hair, absently appreciating that it was just long enough to grasp. "Please," he barely recognised his own voice "I want..."

Dean/Will stopped what he was doing and rested his chin on the jutting edge of Castiel's pelvis. "What? What do you want, my angel?" He blew gently on the tight nest of Cas' pubic hair making the angel give a peculiar full body shudder. Dean/Will gave a self satisfied smile.

"I want to be in you."

"I want that too."

Cas slipped his fingers down to stoke Dean's hole when Dean/Will suddenly gave a loud groan. Castiel froze. "Have I hurt you?" He asked worriedly, "did I do something wrong?"

"No, no," said Dean/Will, "But we don't have anything. I meant to pick up supplies last week but I forgot."

"Supplies? "

"Lube, condoms."

"Oh."Castiel twisted so that he now covered Dean/Will. The relative coolness of Dean/Will's body juxtaposed onto the heat of his own took his breath away. It was like inhaling the first frost of autumn and it excited him. "Not a problem. I am a cosmic entity. I can neither infect or be infected. You are safe with me." He gently placed two fingers on Dean's forehead.

"What are you..."

Cas blushed, "I have not done this before but I have long wished to. I may have done some...research on the practicalities."

The man beneath him laughed, "you have been watching porn!"

Castiel blushed deeper, "I was curious and it was there."

Dean/Will reached up and stroked his face, "what pizza delivery men and babysitters?" He teased.

"My touch will prepare you for me," explained Cas. He knew his body ran much hotter than the norm for humans and he wanted to be sure that Dean/Will could take him without pain.

"Do it"

* * *

When Dean/Will woke some hours later, he was snuggled into Castiel's side and enclosed in his unfurled wings. Carefully, he assessed his physical state. For a being who insisted that he had never had sex before, let alone sex with another man, Castiel had been amazing. In fact Dean/Will had never had anyone better. Cas had kept him on the edge of orgasm for hours until, unable to take it a moment longer, Dean/Will had breathed "Castiel, please, please."

HIs angel had pinned him with his serious glare and murmured, "was that a prayer?" and when Dean/Will had sobbed an agreement, he bought them both to such intense orgasms that sheets were saturated and Dean/Will had passed out. Now the early morning light was bringing a glow to the room and Dean/Will was discovering that he was sore, sticky, his sheets were ruined and he was ridiculously happy.

It was raining. The gentle pattering on the roof was providing a counterpoint to the occasional small snores emanating from the angel beside him. Dean/Will craned his neck to look at Castiel, _God he was so lovely_. Long thick eyelashes brushed his cheeks and those lips, so tempting.

Without opening his eyes, Castiel spoke, "you know I can feel you watching me."

"What can I say? I like watching you sleep."

"Angels do not sleep," said Castiel reprovingly.

"Yeah? What was with all the snoring then?" asked Dean/Will.

"That was for your benefit. I did not want to make you uncomfortable by watching over you as you slept."

Dean/Will pressed closer to his angel, "well, it was adorable," he said.

There was a long pause and then Castiel asked, " what is that noise?"

"It's raining. I love the sound of rain on the roof, don't you?"

Castiel tensed, "Sammy will get wet. Cats do not like to be wet. We have to find him."

Dean/Will laughed, "Sammy has a cat flap," he explained, "he can come and go as he pleases. I'm sure he will be in his basket in the kitchen, don't panic."

"Oh."

There was another long pause and Dean/Will wondered if Castiel had gone back to feigning sleep so he grazed Cas's shoulder lightly with his teeth and whispered,"thank you."

One bright blue eye opened and regarded him pensively, "for what?"

"For caring about my cat. And for last night. For caring about me."

Castiel hummed then, "The term is 'you are welcome' I believe." he could feel Dean/Will's smile against his skin. Castiel was silent for a time then said, "I also enjoyed our night. I do hope you do not become pregnant."

"What? Is that a thing? Is that possible?" Dean/Will was on the edge of a full blown panic attack before he noticed the tiny smile on Castiel's lips. "Ok, you got me."

"Angel humour."

"Yeah, well, it's an acquired taste."

Relaxing back down Dean/Will began gently stroking Castiel's feathers with the side of his finger. The angel sighed, contentedly "I could get used to you doing that for eternity."

"Well, that's good 'cause I ain't planning on stopping anytime soon."


	8. Chapter 8

Whilst Dean/Will would happily have spent the rest of the morning enclosed in Castiel's arms, Sammy was yowling outside of the door as if he was only seconds away from dying of malnutrition. Despite Castiel's insistence that, as an angel he did not sleep, he was at the very least resting peacefully and Dean/Will did not want his greedy cat to disturb him.

Feeding Sammy was always a major production so by the time he returned to their bed, Castiel had relaxed even further. His wings were furled away and he was sprawled across the bed on his belly. Dean/Will carefully slid in beside him and gently ran his fingers over the soft skin of the angel's back. _I've literally slept with an angel_ he marvelled, _I can't believe I'm not more freaked out about this. _Unable to resist he leant over and placed a line of kisses along Cas' spine. The angel's body tasted so sweet and Dean/Will took a moment to regret that Castiel had been so adamant about refusing to allow Dean/Will to kiss him on the mouth, promising only that they would kiss 'when the time was right'.

As he continued his fingertip exploration of Castiel's back Dean/Will discovered two tiny irregularities, so small as to be unnoticeable to the naked eye. He realised that they corresponded to the points on Cas' body where his wings emerged. On a whim he paced his lip over the spot nearest and sucked gently. The effect on Castiel was instantaneous. With an incoherent cry, he surged up, grabbed Dean/Will and was over him and thrusting into him before he could draw breath.

"Christ Cas" Dean/Will could hardly speak, the sensation was almost too intense to bear. His angel drew back slightly to stare into his eyes.

"Sensitive," he growled.

"Yeah, I get that"

"Hmm" grunted Castiel redoubling his efforts and everything went multicoloured.

* * *

Castiel was in his happy place. Exhausted from love making, with a sated Dean Winchester sprawled across his chest their legs tangled together and their breathing quietly in sync he felt a serenity that he had never experienced before. The peace was shattered when Castiel's phone suddenly burst into life.

Dean/Will was dragged from yet another post-coital nap by the sound of 'The Hallelujah Chorus' from Handel's 'Messiah'. Half awake he, at first, thought that somehow Castiel had arranged a heavenly choir to celebrate their joining but then he realised that Cas just had a highly suitable ringtone. Blinking he pushed himself up onto one elbow and rubbed his eyes.

Castiel was sitting on the edge of the bed, his back to Dean/Will, his whole body language screaming stress and concern. Dean/Will did not mean to eavesdrop but he couldn't help overhearing, the room was not that big.

"_Bobby"_

_"Sam is back. Bastards just dumped him on my front porch. I only found him because I was heading out on a supplies run"_

_"And?"_

_"It ain't good, Castiel. The boy is in a bad way. Reckon I need you both back, soon as."_

_"I will arrange things here and be with you imminently."_

_"Both of you?"_

_"Of course."_

Castiel closed his eyes and made the requisite adjustments to reality. Will Deacon would be home in an hour, his colleagues at Kripke's Auto Renovations would be expecting him to be back from his trip. All memories of Dean-as-Will would be obliterated and reality would return to Blackwater Foot. He turned to see Dean/Will staring at him in confusion.

"Castiel?"

"Come here to me."

Cas opened his arms and Dean/Will scrambled off of the bed and into his embrace. Castiel unfurled his wings and pulled his lover close. He cupped Dean/Will's face, stroking his thumbs over those amazing cheekbones. When the celestial bemusement was lifted and reality returned it was unlikely that Dean would remember anything of the past few days, so this was an opportunity that Castiel may never have again, especially if Dean did remember but took Cas' actions badly. He tightened his hold, stared into Dean's beautiful hazel eyes, so green in the early morning light and recited the secrets of his heart. "You are beautiful. I love you. I loved you from the moment I pulled you from perdition. I will always love you, even if it causes me to fall." He managed a smile and whispered, "the time is right." And, for the first time, Castiel kissed Dean Winchester.

* * *

After a lifetime of hunting the supernatural, Bobby Singer thought that he had seen it all, even the discovery of a naked and delirious Sam on his front porch had not fazed him too much but he had to admit to a smidgen of surprise by the sudden appearance, in his kitchen, of a naked Dean Winchester enclosed within the wings of an equally naked Castiel, both of them apparently locked in what, looked to Bobby, like a scorching kiss that did not seem like it was going to end any time soon. He decided to be grateful for that since it gave him time to hide his astonishment and assume his usual air of sang froid, he had a reputation to maintain, after all. Eventually the two men broke apart, both looking somewhat dazed and befuddled.

"Welcome back boys," said Bobby.

Released from Castiel's embrace, Dean turned to face him "There have been five great kisses since 1642 B.C...and the precise rating of kisses is a terribly difficult thing, often leading to great controversy...this one left them all behind." he said breathlessly.

Bobby raised an eyebrow, "Did you just quote 'The Princess Bride' at me?"

Dean looked even more confused, "No! What? No...I mean...Bobby...Cas...what the hell?" he glanced down at himself, "why am I naked? And sticky? Did I miss something fun?"

Castiel cleared his throat, "we may not have any time to lose. Bobby, where is Sam?"

"Sam? What's wrong with Sam?" asked Dean.

"Long story that will be cut short if I don't get to him soon," replied Castiel tartly.

Bobby gestured to the small junk cupboard under the staircase, "He's in there. I got him in from outside then he punched me, bolted and shut himself in there"

"Did he speak?"

"Can't shut him up," said Bobby, "but the only thing he is saying is 'make it stop, make it stop.' Nothing else."

Castiel frowned. Dean had reached the end of his tether and was tired of being ignored as if he was a child in a room of grown ups. He snatched up a gun from Bobby's worktop and fired it into the air. Cas and Bobby spun and stared at him in shock. " FUCK. Is. Wrong. With. Sam?" he ground out, "and why am I only finding out about this now? Also, and I cannot emphasise how much I want an answer to this, why am I naked?"

"Gimme that!" Bobby snatched the gun away from Dean and tucked it in the back of his jeans.

Castiel was striding towards the cupboard, "Bobby will explain everything, " he said, " I must go to Sam."

"You pusillanimous poltroon," spluttered Bobby, furious that Cas had dumped the task of bringing Dean up to speed firmly in his lap.

"This is no time for tautology," said Castiel reprovingly as he crouched to open the cupboard door and crawl inside.

Bobby sighed, "this is gonna take alcohol," he said, "quite a bit of it." he gazed at Dean, "but first, for the love of all that's holy, boy, go shower and put some pants on."

* * *

"Make it stop. Make it stop. Make it stop"

Carefully Castiel opened the cupboard door and stuck his head in. He could see Sam curled into the tiniest ball a 6' 5" man could physically manage. He was naked and trembling and, although his skin looked unmarked, Castiel's angel sight showed him what damage the Cherubim had inflicted on him. It looked to Cas as if the cherubim had played with Sam quite a bit whilst extracting the voice of God from his essence. Had it not been for Sam's various encounters with the divine, Cas was not certain he would have survived. Tentatively, Castiel reached out and laid a gentle hand on the broken man. "Sam," he said, pitching his voice low, "Sam, it's me, Castiel. You know me. I am your friend. I'm going to come and sit with you. Would that be alright? "

"Make it stop. Make it stop."

"I will do my best to make it stop, I promise." With some difficulty, Cas slid into the cupboard space and manoeuvred an unresisting Sam across his lap and into his arms. He, almost unconsciously noted the differences between the two brothers, comparing Sam's lean body with Dean's brawnier frame.

Sam nestled into Castiel's arms and stared, trustingly into his face. "Make it stop?" He asked softly.

Castiel tightened his hold on the younger Winchester, "follow my voice, Sam. Follow it home, back to Dean." He paused, then remembering a gift he had once been given, began to sing.

* * *

Bringing Dean up to date with what had been happening was going just as badly as Bobby had feared. Clearly the time Dean had spent in the shower had not improved his mood and now a newly clean and clothed Dean sat silently as Bobby explained everything, how Sam had been infected by The Voice, Castiel's deal with the cherubim and the lengths they had gone to ensure that Dean was kept out of the loop.

Finally Dean spoke, "so, these Cherubim they thought I would be some kinda problem?"

"Wouldn't you have been?"

"Fuck, yeah. I certainly would not have let them just let snatch Sam like you two did!"

Singer sighed, "we handed Sam over to them, they didn't snatch him. What had infected him was beyond Castiel's ability to heal and he was hurting, Dean, he was in agony. The Cherubim were the only ones who could help and if we wanted Sam back we had to agree to their terms. Keeping you out of the loop was a deal breaker for them."

"According to Castiel"

"Yes, according to Castiel!" Bobby was taken aback, "when did we stop believing what Cas tells us?"

Dean let that go for now. "So whose idea was it to...I don't know...enchant me?"

"It wasn't an enchantment, Dean. Castiel made that very clear. He called it a celestial bemusement which meant that everyone who looked at you saw someone else."

"Even me?"

"Yes."

"But not Castiel?"

Bobby scratched his beard, why was Dean so hung up on this? "No. To be honest, it seemed the most sensible solution at the time."

"To turn me into Cas' personal Ken Doll?"

"To keep Sam safe, to placate the Cherubim. To be sure we got him back in one piece."

"I see." Dean's face was like thunder, "really convenient opportunity for Cas though, wouldn't you say?"

Bobby took a drink, this conversation was spiralling out of control. "What are you talking about, boy?"

Dean huffed out a short and bitter laugh. "C'mon, Bobby. You think I haven't noticed how he looks at me? I know he wants me, so now I'm wondering; what else did Castiel do to me?"

"I don't understand."

"We show up here naked," snarled Dean, "and I'm covered in come. I have no memory of how that happened. So I gotta ask, Did Castiel rape me?"

Bobby was shocked, " Dean, it's Cas, man. Cas. Are we now ignoring that he is an angel of the Lord? Apart from the fact that he is your best friend and there is no way he would do anything to hurt you. Anyway If the intensity of that kiss was anything to go by whatever preceded it was wholly consensual." He leaned forward and slapped Dean upside the head. "and yeah, I have seen how he looks at you and I've also seen you look back at him. Sam sees it, Crowley sees it, even that dickwad Lucifer sees it. Admit to yourself that you love him and move on. And don't throw terms like rape about unless you are ready for a world of trouble."

Dean shook his head, he couldn't articulate how hurt and betrayed he felt, even to himself so he despaired of making Bobby understand "None of that alters the fact that you kept important information from me, made decisions without me and let Castiel pretty much Stockholm Syndrome me for reasons of his own. That adds up to quite a deception ." He looked into Bobby' s eyes, "I don't know if I can get past that, man."

"In terms of protecting Sam we did what we had to do. We did not have the luxury of time here. Your brother was being consumed by the voice of God and that ain't nothing you sit around debating. Cas thought this was our best hope and in matters celestial he is the expert." Dean shook his head stubbornly but Bobby carried on regardless, "Dean you need to focus because from where I'm standing, I'm having to waste my time babysitting you whilst you hold yourself a pity party and in the meantime Castiel's actually trying to look after Sam. You know, Sam? Your brother? The one the Cherubim just dumped in my yard? You got a personal problem with Cas? You talk it out with him but wait until he ain't busy tryin' save our boy. OK?"

Dean nodded mutinously, then he cocked his head, "can you hear Led Zeppelin?"

"What?"

"Someone is singing 'Stairway to Heaven' "

"What? "


	9. Chapter 9

_There's a lady who's sure_

_All that glitters is gold_

_And she's buying a stairway to heaven_

_When she gets there she knows_

_If the stores are all closed_

_With a word she can get what she came for_

_and she's buying a stairway to heaven"_

Castiel was still holding Sam in his arms as he sang to him. Sam had looped an arm around Cas' neck with a deep sigh; his body tension had drained away and now he appeared to be sleeping. Cas let his voice die away and continued with a soft humming, making sure that Sam could both hear and feel it. Cas brushed Sam's hair back from his face and pulled him into a closer embrace. "I have you," he whispered. At that moment, the cupboard door flew open and Bobby stuck his head in. Before he could utter a word Castiel placed a finger on his lips. "Quietly!" he mouthed. Bobby nodded, placatingly.

"How is he?"

"Sleeping deeply. With care, we should be able to move him to a more comfortable environment."

Bobby dredged up a smile, "well whatever you did to 'make it stop', it worked. I wouldn't have pegged you or Sam for Led Zep fans though."

"I had a tape. It was a gift, apparently the convention is to keep them." Bobby looked confused, Castiel sighed."Blame Dean."

Bobby looked stunned, "he made you a mix-tape?" He asked incredulously

"It was of no import."

"I ain't so sure about that" muttered Bobby.

"Anyway, It wasn't about making a noise stop," explained Cas, trying to return them to the point. He wasn't ready to think about Dean just yet. "it was about making the silence stop." Bobby looked puzzled so Castiel explained. "There is heaven and hell, yes?" Bobby grunted in agreement, Cas continued, "and there is purgatory and the empty where angels and demons sleep when they die. Sam has been in the void, the space between all these things. If you can imagine complete sensory deprivation for all time, you have a tiny insight into what the void is. The only beings that can visit and cope are the cherubim and they don't spend longer there than absolutely necessary. The silence is absolute, it is the only place where the Voice of God can be managed. Sam needs familiar noise and bodily contact to tie him back to our reality."

"OK, I've already set up a room for him," said Bobby.

Castiel nodded, "he will need someone with him, to help him come back fully. He already knows my heart sounds and as I do not require sleep or sustenance I would be willing to watch over him, however, Dean's presence would also be helpful."

Bobby rubbed the back of his neck, "yeah, about that. Dean is...er...Dean is having a little trouble adjusting to your reality alignment and...er..."

"You know I could hear you both. I **am** a celestial being," said Cas pointedly "but we knew that this might be his reaction when we set up the plan."

"Yeah, Cas but I'm not sure there is any coming back from this, not anytime soon anyways. He's got it into his head that what went on between you was not of his choosing and... well, Dean is stubborn cuss at the best of times. He thinks I betrayed him by agreeing to your plan and he thinks that you...had your own agenda shall we say."

"I heard. However, I don't think I should be discussing this with you."

Bobby was chastened, "no, no you are right. None of my business. Just be aware things are gonna be tricky for a while.

Castiel nodded, pulled Sam closer and was gone in the blink of an eye.

* * *

In reality it only took four or five days for Dean to realise that the moral high ground was a really lonely place to be. Bobby was not too much of a problem, they had been down this road more than once and Dean knew that they would find a way back to their relationship eventually. In the meantime, Bobby just went with the flow, treating Dean no differently than he ever had, and Dean kinda appreciated that. Already Dean was beginning to relax around him once more and as soon as Dean had admitted to himself that he hated any tension between him and the man he loved like a father, they began to settle back into their comfortable old ways. Cas was a different matter, though. Bobby had tried to talk to Dean about the importance of communicating with Castiel if he wanted to salvage their friendship but Dean shut him down. At times he was not sure that he and Cas would ever completely recover their old camaraderie and trust.

However, although he was still fuming about what he perceived as Castiel's treachery, telling himself that he could barely bring himself to look at the angel, never mind speak to him, the increasingly close relationship that seemed to be developing between Sam and Cas was creating all sorts of uncomfortable emotions for Dean. Sam seemed to be recovering from his experience with the cherubim, he was at least eating more and sleeping less, although he still could not cope with being alone, needed constant audio stimulation and would not or could not talk about what, if anything, he remembered. Dean suspected that Cas was somehow providing Sam with regular infusions of his grace having noted that improvements in his brother's condition coincided with the angel looking tired and drained. He wanted to be there for his sibling, he really did but on the few occasions he had gone to sit with Sam his brother had been tense and on edge until Castiel returned.

The idea that Sam might be developing a bond with the angel made Dean feel as if his own skin was too hot and too small and evoked a dark resentment that was at odds with his current distrust of Cas. Dean hated having his emotions all over the place like this and he had to keep reminding himself that Sam was the focus of concern, not his own hurt feelings. His jealousy, however, had not been allayed when, coming unexpectedly into the living room, he had witnessed Castiel cradling Sam in his lap and watched as he tenderly pushed a stray lock of Sam's hair out of the way so that he could whisper into his ear. The sweet smile that the two had shared made Dean wonder if it was actually Sam and Cas who were meant to share that profound bond that Cas had mentioned in the past. He speculated that Castiel only thought his bond should be with Dean because he was the first Winchester the angel had met. Maybe, now that he and Cas had finally had sex and that itch had been scratched, Cas was over him and could focus his attention on Sam, where it should have been originally.

Now Dean was laying on the roof of Bobby's house like some kind of emo-teen, staring up into the night sky and wondering if the best thing he could do would be to just leave. Bobby would kinda understand, Sam would be devastated but, with luck, he would turn to Castiel for support then they would realise they were meant for each other and everything would be as it should have been. He would have run days ago if it wasn't for the memories.

They came every night just as Dean was falling asleep, and sometimes they intruded during the day too. Some were just small snippets of recollection like the one where he was sure he had a cat, a large ginger fluff ball called Sammy that, peculiarly, did not trigger his allergies. Or a very clear memory of crossing a busy road once and grabbing hold of Castiel's hand as he did so, the feeling of the heat of the angel's skin against his own and the look of surprise and delight on the celestial's face was intoxicating. This sudden penchant of his for sitting on the roof was also new and part of him felt like that was someone else's fetish whilst another part of him could picture he and Cas sharing a beer on a rooftop.

With a groan, Dean grasped his hair with both hands and pulled hard. If it was just memories of friendship with Cas then he could possibly have found the strength to leave but it was the explicit dreams that came to him every night that gave him hope. He saw himself shamelessly placing Castiel' s hand on his cock and rutting against him until the angel had come so copiously as to soak both his own and Dean's pants, seeking his angel out and falling to his knees to suck him. He saw them both naked and fucking, he remembered the feel and taste of Castiel's cock, the weight of it on his tongue, the length of it, the heat of it inside him, he saw them cuddled close and caressing each other. Most importantly he saw with blinding clarity that he had been the instigator every time. "I'm such a dick" he groaned, "Bobby is right. I need to talk to Cas. I need to fix this. I need him."

Laughter from below snagged his attention. Bobby, Sam and Castiel were sitting on the front steps of the house just chilling. Bobby has just finished relating some ridiculous anecdotes from his early hunting days. Dean smiled, it was good to hear Sam laughing, even Cas seemed to appreciate the story. Dean sat up and rested his forehead on his knees. " Cas, please, please"

A soft swoosh of wings and Dean was enclosed in warm feathery embrace. "Was that a prayer?"

"Cas." It was no more than a gentle exhalation. "How did you know I was up here?"

"Your soul scintillates so brightly I could find you on the far side of the universe, in the depths of hell or in the void itself."

Dean leaned back, resting his head on Castiel's shoulder, " I have been a dick."

Castiel kissed his temple and slid his hands under Dean's tee shirt to caress his skin, "I forgive you," he said softly.

"But I was cruel and unkind and I accused you of a terrible thing. I don't know how you ever can forgive me."

"I am an angel, I am all about clemency. Besides, I love you "

"I don't know how I will ever forgive myself."

Castiel's clever fingers had unfastened Dean's jeans, wandered into Dean's pants and were gently stroking him to arousal. "That's easy. You love me and so you will forgive yourself because I ask it of you."

"Just like that?" Wondered Dean.

"Just like that."

* * *

**Some days later**

Castiel stood at the edge of the forest that adjoined Will Deacon's property. This was the first opportunity he had to check up on Will. He had told Dean that he had to go to visit a good friend and the sceptical look on Dean's face had stung slightly, as if he did not believe that Castiel had anyone other than him and Sam.

From his vantage point, Cas could see a tall dark haired man, obviously Will, happily tending to his flower bed. A warm swish of feeling around his ankles made him look down. Good, his friend had found him.

"Sammy." The cat regarded Cas with judgemental eyes. "My apologies" said Cas, hastily, "I had to leave in a hurry. A life was a stake."

Sammy narrowed his eyes, extended his claws and slowly and painfully climbed up Castiel's leg, to settle on his chest. Trying hard to ignore the thin trickle of blood running down his thigh, Castiel tentatively ran a finger around Sammy's neck. His fingers encountered something new. On further exploration it was clear that Sammy was now sporting a beautiful green collar in soft Italian leather. "Was this a gift from Will?" he asked, Sammy mrrped in response. "It suits you." said Cas and was rewarded with a haughty look of disdain, of course Sammy knew his collar suited him, he didn't need it pointed out by this strange winged creature.

"Is Will, alright? Is his reality established?" Sammy gave a small meow, "Good." Castiel was about to rub his face in the cat's soft fur in farewell, when Sammy placed a soft paw on the angel's cheek forcing him to turn his head.

"Will?" A slim, olive skinned, dark haired man was rounding the corner of the house.

Will straightened up and called out " I'm here, Paolo!" Paolo ran to Will and jumped into his arms, wrapping his legs around Will's waist as they kissed.

"Oh!" Castiel blushed as the kiss he was witnessing turned heated, " I see Will bought more than a leather collar for you back from Rome." He gazed at the two men, "they will be happy," he said softly.

Sammy bopped Cas on the nose with his paw making the angel smile. He gently placed Sammy back on the ground. "I will always hear you if you call me," he told Sammy. "but now, I need to go and establish a reality of my own."

With a soft flutter of wings the strange winged creature was gone. Sammy sauntered over to convenient sunny spot and settled down to sleep.

* * *

It had been six days since Dean and Castiel had reconnected, six days of stolen kisses and urgent hand or blow jobs in convenient, concealed places. Dean was in serious danger of being happy. The only snag was that Sam still could not sleep peacefully alone which meant that Castiel spent most nights in Sam's bed and not in Dean's where, in Dean's opinion, he belonged. Now that, for some reason, Dean was getting some of his memories of his time as Will Deacon back, he wanted to wake up in Cas' arms as he had before.

Once again, Dean was up on the roof, it had quickly become his favourite sanctuary. He heard someone climbing out of the attic window to join him and turned expecting to see Castiel back from 'visiting a good friend' but instead it was Sam who was gingerly making his way across the tiles towards him.

"Sam"

"Dean." There was a brief pause as Sam lowered himself down, then, "Can we talk?"

"Sure, what about?"

"Castiel."


	10. Chapter 10

" Can we talk?"

"Sure, what about?"

"Castiel."

* * *

"OK." Dean felt a flutter of fear in his belly. Was this the point when Sam confessed that he and Cas wanted to be together, no room for Dean?

Sam shifted closer to his brother, took a deep breath and began. " First, let me say how happy I am that you two have finally pulled your heads out of your asses and realised what you mean to each other."

"OK, thanks man." This was not what Dean was expecting at all.

Sam continued, "I know how hard it is for you for Cas to be in my bed every night and not in yours. I am trying to get better Dean, honestly but...it's hard, y'know." Dean nodded and put his arm around his younger brother but Sam was not finished. "It doesn't help that I want what you have. I want it so much that it hurts."

"You mean a boyfriend?" asked Dean in surprise. Sam had never shown much of an interest in men before, at least, not a long term interest; but then neither had he until a certain shabby angel had come into his life "Sam, I'm sure that there is someone out there..."

Sam interrupted him, "No, you don't understand, I want what you have. I want Castiel."

"What?."

"I see how you look at each other, I want him to look at me that way too."

Dean twisted to try look into his brother's eyes but Sam was wringing his hands and steadfastly staring off into the distance. Dean looped his arm around his brother's neck and rested their heads together. "Do you want to take Cas away from me?" he asked softly.

Sam shook his head. " No. Of course not! No, I just wish Cas looked at me like he looks at you."

"He does, Sammy. I can see it, why can't you?"

Sam shrugged, " I dunno, Dean. Maybe I should just take off, leave you two to it."

"Is that what you want?"

"Not really."

Dean grinned, he was getting an idea. "Hey, do you remember that girl at the convenience store in Idaho?" he asked, " umm Sharon, Sondra, Susan...?"

"Shannon." said Sam

Yeah, Shannon."

"Yeah, what about her?"

Dean nudged him, "Do you **really** remember?"

"Oh!" Sam blushed, "yeah I do."

"And Tim in Phoenix? And Bruce in Seattle? And those twins in Colorado?"

"Andy and Alison. Yoga teachers, very bendy." Sam's blush was all the way around the back of his neck now.

Dean slipped his hand inside the collar of Sam's shirt and was slowly rubbing his collar bone. "That was fun, yeah?"

"It was. But it was wrong"

"Why wrong?"

"You and me together, it's wrong."

"Did it feel wrong?"

"No. It **was** fun."

Dean whispered into Sam's ear, "we could have fun like that again." He could feel Sam trembling with excitement, just at the thought.

"Are you sure..." Sam began.

Dean interrupted him, "I love you Sammy, time and again we have come through for each other, we have died for each other, been to hell for each other. If we can deal with the bad stuff, why shouldn't we be able to deal with the good stuff too?"

"But, Cas..."

"I watched how he cared for you after the void. I see how he looks at you and how he touches you. Sammy, Cas loves you. He loves us both. And we love him, don't we?"

"We do."

Well, OK then. Team Winchester for the win!"

* * *

**Later that night**

Sam snuggled close to Castiel's side. Cas was pretty sure that the young man was actually more or less recovered from his experiences with the cherubim but Sam maintained that he found it impossible to sleep if he was not sharing Cas' bed. Sam insisted that he did not feel safe unless he was wrapped securely in Castiel's wings and certainly the night terrors, if they did come, seemed less severe on the nights they did sleep together. On the whole, Castiel did not object to this arrangement although he found it irksome in that it seriously limited his opportunity to rekindle his physical relationship with Dean.

Castiel leaned his head back on the pillows and tried to imagine how he could entice Dean back to his bed when the door of the room opened slowly. Castiel was almost tempted to believe that he was asleep and dreaming, had not such a thing been impossible for him, as a naked Dean Winchester crept into the room.

Castiel lifted his wing to show Dean that his brother was asleep in the bed beside him, To his surprise Dean merely nodded and smiled and slid into the bed on Castiel's other side. Settling himself down under Castiel's wing he placed a small kiss on the angel's chest and whispered, "I'm cold. I can't sleep."

Castiel frowned, "I'm a celestial being, not a hot water bottle." he grumbled, but he pulled Dean closer nonetheless. Cas became aware that Sam shifted and was now gently running his fingers along the length of the angel's penis. Cas bit his lip, he was getting hard and he was not sure how Dean would react to that.

"Mmm," Sam sounded half asleep, "so big...and warm"

"Yeah," Dean was stroking him as well now, "he feels amazing inside you. It's like being fucked by the sun."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah although be warned, he comes like a friggin' fire hydrant."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah and his come tastes like strawberries."

Sam hummed once more, "gotta get us some of that." he murmured as he drifted back to sleep.

"For sure," yawned Dean as his body warmed up and his mind slowed.

_What just happened,_ wondered Castiel, The Winchesters were resting quietly, both of them cradling Castiel's cock as if it was the most precious thing in their world.

"Stop it." Dean's voice was pitched low and affectionate

"Stop what?" whispered Castiel.

"Over thinking this."

"I am not sure what this is" admitted Cas.

Dean sighed, "you are a protector," he explained softly, "you have cared for us, looked out for us, always been there for us. Now it's our turn. Sammy and I have talked about this. We both love you, we know you love us and it's time for us to step up and care for you as much as you care for us." he gave Cas a gentle squeeze, "We got you, Castiel. You belong to us now and we belong to you."

Castiel frowned, "and this involves the sleeping naked together?" He placed his hand over Dean and Sam's where they still rested on his cock. "And...the touching?"

"If that is what you want."

Cas wanted things to be absolutely clear, "and the sex?"

Dean laughed, "lots of the sex, yeah"

"With you both?"

Dean captured a nipple, "Hmm mm."

A frustrated sigh,came from Sam's side of the bed, "Cas, the two of us are gonna fuck you so hard very soon but, please, can we just get some sleep tonight. Dean, stop teasing our angel and save your strength for the morning."

For a long while there was silence, punctuated only by the tiny snorts that were Sam snoring then Dean spoke up. "I know you say you don't sleep, Cas but you do need to rest. You bin' giving Sammy some of your mojo to get him healthy again, I know it and you can deny it all you want but you look exhausted." He reached up and stroked the angel's face, " Rest. I'll watch over you."

With a sigh Castiel relaxed and closed his eyes. _Rest. I'll watch over you. _Finally, after millennia of existence, Cas had someone to watch over him. _We got you, Castiel. You belong to us now and we belong to you._ Castiel had finally found a home.


End file.
